8:41 am, August 14, 2024
The first cars that will take part in this year’s Bangers4Ben rally have been revealed and the public will be getting the chance to see them up close and personal at the British Motor Show.
For this year’s event, Automotive Compliance has teamed up with Lawgistics to create a very special trio of Tom and Jerry-themed cars.
Teams from the two companies spent hours transforming the MG TF, Ford Kuga and Honda CR-V into cars fit for any cartoon lover.
The bangers have each been given fur exteriors to represent the characters of Tom the cat, Jerry the mouse and Spike the dog.
The overall theme of this year’s rally is ‘do the continental’ with drivers set to venture though the Alps over four fun-filled days in October.
Phil Harding, from Automotive Compliance, told Car Dealer: ‘We’ve worked on the plans together, prepped the cars together and agreed at the Ben Ball last year before we’d even talked about the idea to help raise awareness of Ben and raise some cash.
‘We were told about the theme last year and I immediately said to myself “Tom & Jerry”.
‘I discussed it here at Automotive Compliance with Paul Guy and Paul Speakman and they agreed that it was an excellent idea.
‘We rang Joel at Lawgistics to see if they wanted to collaborate and he said, “I’ve got a great idea, Tom & Jerry!!”
‘We all fell over laughing when we realised we’d both come up with the same idea.
‘An incredible amount of work has gone into the cars. We spent a good while with V12 Sports and Classic choosing cars that would fit the characters.
‘Once we had them delivered to Lawgistics drivers Joel and Ian and Automotive Compliance’s teams Paul Speakman, Paul Guy, myself and Tomos Parry, we headed off to spend two days furring up the cars.
‘As you can see, they look amazing.’
A very visual way of raising money
The cars were completed more than two months before Bangers4Ben gets under way so they can go on display at this week’s British Motor Show in Farnborough.
The three eye-catching cars, donated by V12 Sports And Classics, can be found in Hall 1 of the Farnborough International Exhibition Centre on stand 1810.
It is hoped that by showing off the creations, more money will be raised for the industry charity Ben.
Harding added: ‘Supporting Ben in any way is important. It is a one-stop shop for helping people in the industry.
‘Bangers4Ben is now an intrinsic yearly part of that money-raising.
‘It brings together car dealers and suppliers who focus on raising as much money for Ben as possible.
‘You make a lot of friends, a lot of contacts and it’s a very visual way of raising money for the charity.’
Entrants will be covering some 1,500 miles when they head to mainland Europe and the Alps for the event, which takes place between October 5 and 8 and will cover some of the best roads and mountain passes that France and Switzerland have to offer.
Participants need to buy a car for no more than £750, then theme, paint or decal it however they like, as well as getting togged up in fancy dress – within legal requirements of course!
Once the rally is over and everyone is back in Blighty, the cars will be donated to be sold at auction, with all proceeds going to Ben and adding to whatever the entrants are able to raise as well.
The teams at Automotive Compliance and Lawgistics are hoping to raise £3,000 for Ben. You can donate to their campaign here.
The British Motor Show gets under way tomorrow (Aug 15).
